Coal Current Affairs

The data from the Ministry of Commerce and Industries has shown that the growth in the eight core sectors of the economy fell to a 16-month low of 3.5 per cent in November. The eight core sectors are coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilizer, steel, cement and electricity.

Growth of Core Sectors

The following observations can be made from the data of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries:

The growth in the eight core sectors of the economy fell to a 16-month low of 3.5 per cent in November, after it had hit a three-month high of 4.8 per cent in October.

The cement production saw growth reduce by more than half in November.

In the steel sector, the output registered a 6 per cent rise in November.

The 3.7 per cent growth in coal production was a three-month low.

The growth in electricity generation also halved to 5.4 per cent in November.

Crude oil output contracted by 3.5 per cent.

The natural gas production managed to barely make it back to the growth charts with 0.5 per cent

The output of the fertiliser sector contracted by a significant 8 per cent.

Economists contribute the slowdown to the unfavourable base effect, along with a sudden slowdown in the growth of cement production and electricity output.

According to index of eight core industries released by Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Core sector growth has grown at faster pace of 6.7% in January 2018 against 3.4% in January 2017. The eight core sectors had grown by 4.2% in December 2017 and 7.4% in November 2017.

Key Facts

Cumulatively, the growth in eight core sectors during April-January this fiscal slowed to 4.3% as against 5.1% in the same period last fiscal. The growth in key sectors will have implications for Index of Industrial Production (IIP) as these eight segments account for about 41% of the total factory output.

Breakup of January performance:

Petroleum refinery production: It jumped up by 11%.

Cement output: It jumped up by 20.7%.

Electricity generation: Its growth rose to 8.2%.

Coal sector output: It improved by 3%.

Steel production: It grew by 3.7%.

Crude oil production: It dropped by 3.2%.

Fertiliser output: It dropped by 1.6%.

Natural gas: Its output fell by 1%.

Core Industry sector

Core industry can be defined as main industry of the economy. In most countries, there is particular industry that seems to be backbone of all other industries and it qualifies to be the core industry. In India, there are eight core sectors comprising of coal, crude oil, natural gas, petroleum refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity.